Colorado city votes to rename ‘Swastika Acres’ neighborhood

April 18, 2019

This Jan. 3, 2019 photo shows snow covered Swastika Acres in Englewood, Colo. The neighborhood in the Denver suburb was named Swastika Acres decades before the symbol was adopted by the Nazis. KDVR-TV reports the Cherry Hills Village City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, April 16, 2019, to approve a name change to "Old Cherry Hills" to prevent future controversy. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post via AP)

CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado city has voted to drop the name “Swastika Acres” from a subdivision.

KDVR-TV reports the Cherry Hills Village City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a name change to “Old Cherry Hills” to prevent future controversy.

The neighborhood in the Denver suburb was named Swastika Acres decades before the symbol was adopted by the Nazis.

Councilman Dan Sheldon spearheaded the change and says the name comes from the Denver Land Swastika Company that divided area land into plots near the turn of the 20th Century.

While the name cannot be found on road signs, it still appeared on real estate closing documents.

Sheldon says one woman opposed the change to preserve the historical value of the symbol, despite having lost family in the Holocaust.

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This story removes a reference to a woman who opposed the name change attending a meeting.